Monster Studies
by K2JC
Summary: "Good Morning, students. You may call me the Handler and I'll be teaching Basic Monster Physiology, Behavior and Abilities. And after class, please proceed to Emerald Forest for Live Monster Combat. And don't forget to attend Scavenge and Survival class after. Oh! Almost forgot. Welcome to Monster Studies!"


"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH -oof!"

Leo groaned before rolling to his back. He slowly sat up and observed his surroundings. Brilliant Blue eyes scanning the large trees and green shrubbery surrounding him. Man, fast travel by Windrake is great and all but why did the world decided to it was a good time to throw him into a snowstorm. Wait a second... Where the hell is all the snow? The Hunter jumped to his feet and realized that there was not a single piece of snow in sight. This wasn't right. There should be blankets of snow as far as the eye can see. This is not Hoarfrost Reach. It looked more like it belonged to the New World, maybe even the Old World.

His thoughts were interrupted by a scream from above and the Hunter looked up just as something slammed into him. Leo was once more on the ground on his back but this time, there was a weight on his front and the Hunter looked down to see a pair of familiar Emerald Green orbs gaze back at him.

"Tora/Leo!?"

The two stood up and Leo was immediately enveloped in a hug by the much smaller woman but this was immediately followed by a sharp elbow to the gut. Leo glared at the woman.

"What the hell was that for!?"

"That was for leaving me behind in Astera, you jerk! I wanted to go to Whorefoot Reach!"

Leo laughed lightheartedly while rubbing the sore spot on his abdomen. For such a small Hunter, Tora hits like an enraged Barroth "It's Hoarfrost Reach, Tora. Maybe you really can't hear so great down there. Want me to lean down so you can hear me better?"

'Do I have a death wish? Probably.'

He could see her face turning red and he swore steam started spewing out of her ears. Oh boy, he was in for it now. Yeah, probably should've kept his mouth shut.

"JERK!"

Tora grabbed his collar and sent a strong, armored punch that sent him flying onto his back on the ground. She didn't give Lep a chance to recover before straddling him and repeatedly slapping him in the face.

"Quit it, tiny tits!"

"Urusai!"

"Knock it off!"

Without warning, another person decided to -unknowingly- join them. Leo didn't know how much abuse his body can take while Tora felt her world spin as she lay prone on Leo's front, feeling a weight settle on her back. After everything stopped spinning and the three Palicoes dancing around her vision were gone, Tora looked over her shoulder to see the Handler, of all people, sitting on her back with a look of confusion on her face. The Handler had her mouth open and looked like she was about to bite into something, judging by the way her hand looked like it was holding onto a piece of meat.

"MEOWSTEEEERRR!"

The Handler looked up just in time to catch the falling Palico. The Leather-armored, striped, grey Felyne looked up at the Handler's face before nuzzling his head on his savior's collar. Seeing this, the two Hunters wondered why the Handler gets all the love. Zak was their Palico damn it. Although, the Handler did look cute when she hugged the grey Felyne. (A/N: Cuter Handler Face Mod. Can't help myself.) It was then Leo decided his body's had enough of being a pancake and spoke up.

"As adorable as this little reunion is. Can you guys get off me, please?"

"Oh! Sorry."

Zak jumped off the Handler's arms while the bubbly girl got to her feet. Tora sat up but did not notice the rather suggestive position she was in. Leo, however, did. Seeing as the girl was currently wearing Kirin armor, sans the Kirin Horn, he decided to just shut his mouth and enjoy the feel and view of her toned legs and... Okay. Those are very, very, very tight shorts.

"Hey, Tora. Not that I'm complaining or anything but can you get off? Things are gonna get pretty awkward if you don't. Oh, too late."

Tora raised an eyebrow and looked over her shoulder to the Handler for clarification. Said young woman was red in the face and pointed at Leo's legs. The shorter Hunter then felt something solid poke her butt and felt her cheeks heat up. Silently, she stood up and briskly walked over to the Handler before grabbing the taller girl by the wrist and dragging her away. The Palico running after them. Leo watched the three leave and waved them off.

"Yeah, you guys go ahead. I'll, uh... I'll catch up in a minute." He looked down at his pants and sighed "This could take a while. Where the hell's a cold stream when you need one?"

~Line Break~

In hindsight, maybe it was a bad idea leaving Leo back there. Emerald Green eyes glared at glowing red ones as a giant, black snake loomed over the trio. Tora's instincts screamed for her to move and the Hunter tackled the Handler back. Zak jumped away as well and landed a few feet away from his Masters. The Palico's eyes widened and jumped in the air while flailing his arms.

"Meowsters! Now is not the time for mating!"

The Handler felt a pair of soft lips against her own and her eyes widened as she stared directly at Tora's own shocked ones. The short Hunter was lying on top of the Handler, their lips locked and one of Tora's hands was firmly grasping the Handler's right breast. Tora immediately jumped to her feet and sputtered an apology before running after the giant snake who decided the jumping Felyne was a much interesting prey than the two humans. The giant snake cornered Zak by a tree and loomed over the shaking Palico. Seeing this, Tora unsheathed her Wyvern Jawblade and readied a Charge Attack at the snake's tail. She realized too late that the 'tail' was in fact a second head. The white head thrust itself towards the Hunter and threw her back a few feet away. Fortunately, this gave Zak enough time to get away.

Meanwhile, the Handler sat up but was still in a trance. She didn't notice that Leo had arrived until the taller Hunter grabbed both her shoulders and shook her violently. Returning to her senses, she pushed the Hunter's arms away before getting back on her feet. She gave an apologetic smile and wished her face wasn't so red right now.

"S-sorry about that." The Handler apologized while rubbing the back of her head before turning serious "Tora and Zak need help, partner. I've never seen a Monster like that before and I've never heard or read anything about it too. This could be a completely new species."

"Could be." The maroon haired Hunter muttered as he observed Tora fight against the black and white snake. Despite the obvious color, the snake had glowing red eyes and marks on it's face. Leo tried to think of a way to beat it. It was fast and very lengthy. Maybe if he distracted it, Tora can cut the Monster in the middle "How about we kill it then study it after."

He didn't wait for a reply before taking out his Teostra's Castle. He jumped over a kneeling Tora and grabbed onto the snake's head. Leo began to hack away with the Switch Axe before kicking off into a flip and landing to a crouch. He didn't let up with his attack and charged, swinging the Switch Axe upwards and striking the black snake's jaw. He switched to his Sword Form and grabbed on to the black snake's head before slashing away at the head, the blade leaving behind burn marks on the snake's skin.

Not wanting to be left behind, Tora readied her Jawblade for a Charge Attack but cancelled it into a tackle that stopped the white snake's head as it tried to strike her. She didn't know how her tackles can somehow stops a Monster's charge but she wasn't complaining. The tackle managed to stagger the snake, giving her enough time to charge up another attack. Tora roared and swung the charged up blade down the staggered snake's head, burying it halfway but the snake was surprisingly still alive. It hissed in pain and swung it's head all over the place and Tora held onto the Jawblade for dear life.

Back to Leo, the Hunter held onto the side of the snake's head before unloading all the Slinger's ammo and jumping away from the staggering beast. The snake fell down and was having trouble lifting it's head. The Hunter didn't give it another second to recover and buried his blade in the side if the snake's head before unleashing a powerful fiery Elemental Discharge that destroyed the snake's head and threw the Hunter a couple of feet away. Leo landed in a crouch before looking at the second snake head. He could see Tora struggling to hold on to her Jawblade as the white snake thrashed about. Before he knew it, the snake slammed into a rock and fell to the ground.

Tora saw her opportunity and pulled her Great Sword free from the snake before charging up. Feeling the right amount of power needed, Tora swung down on the beast's head before charging up another attack and doing it again. This time she used her body to flip forward and the momentum carried by her blade was enough to finally cut off the snake's head. Tora let out a breath and sheathed her Wyvern Jawblade. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked to see the owner was Leo. Emerald Green met Brilliant Blue and the two smiled.

"Nice job."

"Was there ever any doubt?"

Leo scoffed and the two were soon joined by the Handler and Zak. Speaking of the Palico, where the hell's he been? The Handler congratulated the two on a job well-done. It wasn't long before the four questioned where they were and with that, Leo questioned where Zak was.

"Mind telling me where you went?"

"Oh! Of course, Meowster." The Palico replied excitedly before pulling out a journal. That's one thing they did not expect from someone without opposable thumbs. Zak showed them drawings of Monsters they haven't seen before. Black wolves with boney spikes and masks. Black Arzuros-like Monsters with the same boney spikes and mask but different orientation. Black Akura Vashimu-like Monster with bone armor and glowing yellow spike and finally, a giant black bird. Apparently, these New Types of Monsters share similar traits of black fur or feathers and bone armor and masks as well as glowing red eyes. To think, Zak drew these with excellent attention to detail and in the time it took them to beat the snake. Tora had questions of her own though.

"Zak, why did you suddenly up and left?"

"Sorry, Meowster. But my ears twitched when I heard something from the distance. I saw a young Hunter riding that black Arzuros and thought I might follow it to observe it's behavior. I knew my Meowsters can handle the snake so I followed them. I came across a purrculiar sight. There were these young Hunters being chased around by those new Monsters or watching the others get chased by the new Monsters. Do you want me to lead you to them, Meowsters?"

The three looked at each other and silent conversation passed between them. Getting nods from both Leo and Tora, the Handler knelt down and smiled at Zak "Alright, little buddy. Lead the way."

Zak smiled and saluted before heading towards the forest. Leo and the Handler followed him but stopped in their tracks when they heard Tora let out an anguished cry. They turned and saw the smaller Hunter trying to skin the slowly evaporating snake.

"No! Stop evaporating damnit! I need your scales!"

Leo sighed and walked over to Tora before grabbing her by the middle and carrying her like a sack of potatoes. A kicking, screaming, cursing sack of potatoes. He should also mention that this sack can elbow the back of his head too.

~Line Break~

When they reached the area where Zak saw the other Monsters, Tora had calmed down and the four were greeted by the sight of eight teenagers getting chased by the Akura Vashimu-like Monster and the giant bird circling above them. The Handler and Zak wanted to help the teens, so did Leo and Tora but what they really want was to see how strong those two new Monsters were. They trailed after them and watched from the distance. The group of teens stopped and hid behind pillars from the remains of the ruins.

Tora, who took a post on one of the latge tree branches, kept her eyes on the giant bird who screeched as it nested on top of a ruined tower overlooking the rest of the ruins. The small Hunter narrowed her eyes when she realized the scorpion was nowhere in sight. She felt the tree rumble and looked down to see the scorpion tearing down trees as it made it's way to the teens. Tora looked towards Leo and the Handler, who took refuge on a tree on the far right, shake their heads as the small Hunter let out a shit-eating grin. Looking back down, Tora grabbed the handle of her Great Sword before jumping off the branch and landing right at the scorpion's back. Laughing maniacally, she unsheathed the Wyvern Jawblade and buried it on the scorpion's back causing it to thrash around the ruins. Some of the teens made a run for the bridge while a girl in pink pulled out a weapon similar to a Light Bowgun and began firing at the giant bird, leaving behind pink smoke from the explosions.

On top of the tree, Leo sighed and aimed the Clutch Claw at the scorpion before firing. The claw grabbed onto to the thrashing beast's pincer and Leo was immediately flung off his feet as the scorpion swung it's appendage wildly at two other teens. One wore green while the other wore black and white. Leo managed to grab onto the pincer before using Teostra's Castle Axe Form to try and chop the appendage off. He looked over to Tora and saw the smaller Hunter had pulled her Great Sword free and was now holding onto the scorpion's other pincer, her Wyvern Jawblade glowing red as she raised it high above her head. The shared a nod and simultaneously swung their respective weapons down, doing massive damage to the beast.

Tora grit her teeth when her Great Sword got stuck halfway and the Hunter punched the blunt side of the blade to force it further down. The Great Sword cut through the scorpion's appendage and separated the pincer from the rest of it's arm. The scorpion roared in anger flung Leo off and sending him slamming into a pillar before facing Tora. The Hunter had barely enough time to raise her weapon to block it's massive stinger from striking her. The force of the blow pushed her back but she managed to stay upright rather than falling on her ass. Tora lowered her blade and moved to attack but two blurs cut across the scorpion's face, hurting it and at the same time angering it. The two regrouped on her side and the three readied themselves to face the angered Monster.

Back to the trees, the Handler watched the situation with a worried expression. It wasn't the fact that they were fighting Monsters. It's because they were fighting Monsters they have never seen nor heard of before. She lowered her goggles to observe the fight further and found her eyes on Zak who was running towards the scorpion while pushing a Palico Slinger forwar. The Felyne stopped a few feet away and aimed the device at the scorpion. Zak lowered the goggles of his leather cap before firing a barrage of Meowlatov Cocktails at the Monster. The scorpion roared in pain before spinning it's body around with it's tail extended out. The tail slammed into the two teens and Tora before the scorpion set it's sights on the Palico. It roared before charging but Leo jumped over Zak with Teostra's Castle, in it's Sword Form, raised high above his head.

"Rrrraaaagggghhhh!"

The maroon haired Hunter swung the amped Switch Axe down on the Monster's head, dealing a fiery damage down the middle of it's face. It roared in pain and Leo mounted the beast's pincer and finished what he started. Still amped, he brought down the Switch Axe and severed the scorpion's pincer before stabbing it's head and releasing a powrful Elemental Discharge. This blew them both back and Leo landed on his back. Zak was quick to run to his side and ready a Vigorwasp Spray but Leo raised his hand and rose to his feet before looking down at the Felyne.

"Use it for Tora and those two teens."

The reply he got was a salute and Leo watched the Palico run towards the downed and dizzy trio. He then faced the staggering beast and saw the black blood and saliba dripping from it's maw. Before they could go at it again, a roar stopped them in their tracks. An Uragaan burst out of the treeline and was charging right at them. Leo heard a scream and saw the Handler holding on to one of the Uragaan's hard crystals. He then saw the signs that told him that the Brute Wyvern was about to roll into a wheel.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? GET OUTTA THERE!"

The Handler closed her eyes and muttered something under her breath before jumping off just as the Uragaan rolled into a wheel. Leo rolled to the side to avoid it and held out his arms just in time to catch the Handler bridal-style. The scorpion wasn't so lucky as the Uragaan slammed into it full-force and sent the two Monsters falling over the cliff. Feeling a pair of arms wrapped tightly around him, Leo looked down and smiled at the Handler.

"I can't believe I'm saying this but thanks for bringing a Uragaan. Where'd you even find one? Actually, how'd you even get on it's back?"

The Handler simply buried her face in his chest, eliciting a chuckle from the Hunter before Leo lowered her legs to the ground. The red-faced girl managed to calm herself enough to look Leo in the eye as she recalled what happened. Back at the trees, the Handler observed their fight and the new Monsters' behavior and attack patterns when she spotted Winddrakes fly by. It didn't take long before the tree she was on began to tremble violently and an Uragaan came out of nowhere and slammed into the tree she was on. She tried to jump on to the adjacent tree but she was a few inches too short and fell right into it's back. It thrashed about before charging towards the scorpion and Leo. The rest, as they say, is history.

"I'm just glad your safe." Leo replied with a relieved sigh.

"Us too."

The two turned to the voice as Tora, Zak and the teens joined them. Leo turned his gaze towards the teens and took in their appearance. The girl had long, wavy, black hair and a pair of amber eyes. She wore a black buttoned vest with coattails. Underneath this is a white, sleeveless, high necked, crop undershirt and white shorts with a zipper on the front of each leg. On her left arm is a detached sleeve with a silver cuff around her bicep and black ribbons are wrapped around both forearms. A small, loose scarf is wrapped around her neck and wore black low-heeled boots and stockings.

The boy, on the other hand, had his dark hair tied into a ponytail and had a streak of magenta on the left side of his hair that also matched the color of his eyes. wore a dark green, diagonally-buttoned, long-sleeved tailcoat that is red on the inside, with black and gold trimming and pink cuffs.He also wore a black, long-sleeved shirt beneath the suit and light-tan pants with black shoes. If he had to guess, the boy was at least 5'9 and the girl was 5'6. 5'9 if you count her bow.

"Thanks for helping us take down that Deathstalker." The boy in green thanked them before holding out his hand to Leo "My name is Lie Ren."

"Leo." The Hunter replied before turning to the girl, who introduced herself as Blake Belladonna "Nice to put a name on the face. By the way, the little guy that helped patch you up is our Purrfect Palico, Zak."

The grey Felyne waved hello, not noticing the odd looks the teens gave him.

"Meowdy-do!"

Tora snorted before turning to see the other teens fighting the giant bird.

"Um, I think your friends are having a little bird problem."

Ren and Blake looked to the direction of the ruins and saw their friends (Acquaintances, in Blake's case.) trying to fight off the Nevermore. The two quickly ran to their respective partners. Ren joined Nora as she fired her grenades at the Nevermore. He could see Pyrrha crouched on top of a rock as she fired her weapon, Miló, at the avian Grimm that was circling around them. He felt the wind rush past him as Blake jumped the broken bridge. The girl separated her weapon, Gambol Shroud, revealing a ribbon connected it and let herself fall to the ravine. Before she could be intimate with the ground below, she threw Gambol Shroud to the cliffside and flung herself towards the Nevermore.

Gambol Shroud returned to it's sword form and Blake sent quick slashes across the Nevermore's head before flipping forward to it's back. She ran down the length of it's back all the while slashing across the back. It didn't seem to do much damage and the girl jumped off the Grimm and landed on the broken tower where her partner, her partner's sister and the Schnee Heiress were positioned.

"It's tougher than it looks!" Blake yelled through the strong winds.

"Then let's give it everything we got!" Yang yelled back as she readied Ember Celica.

Ruby saw this and transformed Crescent Rose to it's Scythe Form but it was still capable of firing bullets. Blake did the same to Gambol Shroud and turned it to a pistol before aiming at the oncoming Nevermore. Weiss spun Myrtenaster's Dust Chamber like a revolver's chamber and aimed the rapier towards the Grimm as well. As it drew closer, the four began firing at the Nevermore. The Grimm shrugged off their attacks and went straight for the supports if the tower, destroying it and causing the structure to break down into pieces.

The Hunters watched this all from a distance. They moved to help them but the ground they stood on trembled. Leo could see that Ren and his companions felt it too and tried to keep themselves steady. The blonde in armor didn't have much luck on that one. He fell on his back and moved to stand but the Uragaan burst out from underneath him and threw him high into the air. Leo ran to catch the blonde but the Uragaan roared and slammed it's massive jaw on the ground. The shockwave that followed blasted the Hunter away. He landed on his back and tried to stand on shaky legs but his world was spinning.

Tora saw that Leo was dazed and charged the Brute Wyvern. She jumped and grabbed on to the side of it's head before using her Hunting Knife to repeatedly stab it. It tried to throw her off but she managed to hold on and climb on it's back before stabbing it there. The Uragaan swung it's tail and sent explosive rocks at the teens as they tried to attack the Brute Wyvern. The redheaded teen slid under the explosive rock flung her way and ran up the side of the Monster before flinging herself towards the falling blonde. She managed to catch him and the two landed safely on the ground. On to the side, Zak reloaded his Palico Slinger and aimed it at the Uragaan's massive jaw before opening fire. He was soon joined by the orange haired girl, firing her Light Bowgun-like weapon at the Uragaan's side while Ren fired two smaller weapons and ran circles around the Monster.

When the Monster fell to the ground and struggled to get up, Jaune turned to Pyrrha "Pyrrha, give Nora a boost. Nora!" The girl in pink turned to him just as she transformed Magnhild into it's Hammer Form "Hammer it down!"

Nora grinned and readied herself as Pyrrha ran towards her. The red-haired champion dropped into a crouch and readied Akoúo̱ just as Nora jumped and landed on the shield. Not wasting the momentum, Pyrrha flung the girl into the air while Nora fired a grenade from her weapon as a boost.

Tora got off the Uragaan's back and was about to attack it but stopped herself before pulling out a Pickaxe from her pack and started mining the downed Monster's back. Zak saw this and began waving his arms in the air as he tried to warn his Meowster but his warnings fell on deaf ears. The Handler joined him but to no effect. Leo shook his head to clear the dizziness away and spotted the downed Uragaan. The Hunter saw the girl in pink high in the air and had her hammer ready to strike down the downed Monster. Thinking quickly, Leo ran towards the Uragaan's jaw and placed a Mega Barrel Bomb beside it. He quickly ran over to Tora and grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her to safety, ignoring the smaller Hunter's protests as she tried to keep the sack of Uragaan Rubies from spilling it's contents.

Nora descended from the sky and slammed Magnhild right into the Monster's jaw just as Leo fired a small stone from his Slinger at the Mega Barrel Bomb. The Hammer's blow destroyed the Uragaan's jaw and the explosion from the Mega Barrel Bomb engulfed the Monster while throwing the orange-haired teen into the air. Ren looked up just as Nora managed to right herself and stood on Magnhild's hammer to land in front of him, leaving large cracks on impact. The girl grinned and booped him on the nose.

"Boop."

Jaune and Pyrrha joined the two before turning to face the approaching four. Upon seeing the Palico, Nora immediately pulled the grey Felyne in tight hug. Zak screeched in surprise before returning the hug. Someone once said that strangers are just friends you haven't met yet. Besides, this Hunter is very friendly to him. His Meowsters chuckled before introducing themselves to the other teens. Meowster Leo was the first one to do it.

"You guys did great work out there. Normally, it would take longer to take down that big bastard but the fall from the cliff might've weakened it. My name's Leo." The maroon-haired Hunter held out his hand with a small smile and removed his headgear to reveal his shaggy, maroon hair (A/N: Dante's hair but maroon in color).

The blonde introduced himself as Jaune Arc and -in his words- was short, sweet and the ladies love it. Tora snorted and Leo chuckled while Handler simply smiled politely. Zak was too busy getting love from the orange-haired girl, Nora Valkyrie, to care. Leo observed the boy's attire. black short-sleeved hoodie with detached reddish-orange sleevesunderneath a white diamond-shaped chest plate cut off above his lower abdomen, and placed over his shoulders are a pair of white spaulders with rerebraces set under them.He wore blue jeans with a white patch placed on the left knee and black sneakers which have "left" and "right" written in black on the respective shoes' soles.

Meanwhile, Tora introduced herself to the redhead, Pyrrha Nikos. The small Hunter found her eyes taking in the redhead's attire. she wore a brown overbust corset with a vertical strip of lighter brown in the center. She wore an elastic, black, A-line mini skirt and brown armband gloves on both arms. She also wore a red ankle-length sash that wrapped around her skirt. There was a small circular bronze plate on her right hip opposite two pouches with both connected to a belt. a brown circlet adorned with a pair of small, green, teardrop-shaped emeralds on thin chains. She also sported a large bronze gorget around her neck and a bronze bracelet on the upper half of her left arm.She had elaborate bronze greaves that started below her mid-thigh before continuing downwards into her boots as well as a pair of cuisses that began mid-thigh and ended slightly above her knees. She was also equipped with a bronze bracer on her left arm. Her high-heeled boots were brown with bronze trim, matching her skirt and sleeves and reaching up to mid-calf.

After their introductions, the group faced Nora as she finally let the Palico go but Zak climbed up her back and sat on her shoulders. The girld stood straight and saluted with Zak mimicking the salute. Leo, Tora and the Handler took their time in observing the girl's attire. A collared black vest that ends at her waist. She wears a white sleeveless top that forms a tiny heart shape cut out over her chest, with a white detached sleeve on each arm. She wears matching fingerless gloves on each hand. She sports a short pink skirt that starts at the waist and ends mid-thigh. Her shoes are a mix of pink and white with pink laces, displaying her emblem on their soles. She also wears armor that begins in the middle of the shoulder and neck and ends by the waist.

"Nora Valkyrie. Reporting for duty!"

"Nya!"

Nora tried to keep a straight face but ended guffawing with the Palico joining her. Leo chuckled before looking at the other four teens to see how they were fairing against the giant bird. The group saw the battle come to an end as the girl with the red cape dragged the giant bird by the neck up the cliffside with her scythe. When she reached the top, her weapon sliced clean through the bird's head. Death via decapitation. Leo, Tora, Handler and Zak watched the whole thing with amazement in their eyes. This kid's a natural when it comes to Monster Hunting it seems. The killing part at least. Tora wondered if they could've helped with the Zorah Magdaros. Leo wondered how the kid managed to drag something that big while still havin enough speed and strength to run vertically up the cliffside. The Handler lowered her goggles to see that the giant bird's corpse -once it landed on the ground- was slowly evaporating. She zoomed in and it really was evaporating. Behind the goggles, her eyes narrowed at that. Corpses don't evaporate. They usually get taken care of by the carnivorous wildlife or scavengers that happened to pass by. Soon, the eight were joined by the four girls. Introductions followed before the girls found themselves looking over the Uragaan's corpse.

~Line Break~

Ruby Rose tilted her head in confusion as she looked at the giant corpse in front of her. Using Crescent Rose, she gently poked the thing to see if it was dead or not.

"Don't worry about it, kid. The Uragaan's dead."

Ruby turned to the speaker to see a man in... winter clothes? Why on Remnant would someone wear something like that in the middle of a forest? Her eyes then found themselves locked on to the weapon on his back. She vanished, leaving behind rose petals on the place where she stood before, and began looking over the man's weapon.

"Oh!yourweaponlookssocool!whatdoesitdo?doesitturnintoagun?amachinegunorasniperrifleoracannonora- "

She felt two hands grab her by the shoulder and stopped her rapid fire questions. The man looked at her with amusement before shaking his head and unsheathing his weapon. Ruby saw the weapon unfold into a humongous axe, easily bigger than the man himself. Considering he looks as tall as Uncle Qrow, that weapon is HUGE!

"Oh, that looks so cool! What do you call it?"

"Teostra's Castle."

"Teo-whatdawhat?"

The man chuckled as he folded the weapon back and sheathing it.

"Teostra's Castle. Got it after taking down a lot of Elder Dragons called Teostra. Man, that was one of the greatest achievements in my life. Of course, there was also Xeno'jiiva. Almost lost an arm... and a leg... and my whole body to that thing."

Ruby blinked as she looked up at the man. Everything he said just went over her head. The man chuckled at seeing her expression before rubbing the back of his head with a sheepish smile.

"Sorry, kid. Forgot to introduce myself. My name is Leo. What's yours?"

"Oh! Uh, Ruby. Ruby Rose. Just a girl with normal knees!"

Leo raised an eyebrow and Ruby wanted to find a very deep hole and hide herself forever. Ugh, why did she have to socialize again? The maroon haired man chuckled before ruffling her hair to which she piffed her cheeks and crossed her arms in annoyance.

"You know, for a kid, you're a conplete badass." Leo complimented with a grin "You managed to take down that bird and cut it's clean off. I can only think of one person who would be crazy enough to do that. Hell, he might even do it with his bare hands."

"Hehe, well I couldn't have done it without them." Ruby replied as she looked at the Yang, Blake and Weiss. They wouldn't have managed to take out that Nevermore if they hadn't worked together. Weiss' glyphs were a big help as was Blake's ribbon and Yang's strength. Leo looked to where the young girl was looking at and smiled. You can always hunt on your own but it's always fun when you have friends with you. His brilliant blue gaze found themselves looking over at Tora and the Handler as the former mined the back of the Uragaan while the latter talked to the others about the Monster and what it can do, it's behavior and whatnot. Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha were focused on her every word while Yang and Jaune were looking over one of the explosive rocks that the Uragaan flung around. Zak was dancing with Nora while Ren looked at the girl in pink with a small smile on his face. The Palico then looked at the boy before grabbing Ren's hand and dragging him along as well.

It wasn't until later that the group hot acquainted and decided to head back with their relics. By the time they got there, Professors Ozpin and Goodwitch were waiting patiently along with four other boys. The ride back to Beacon via Bullhead was quiet, save for Leo and his friends questions about the aircraft and how it worked. Ozpin and Glynda answered the best they could while the four boys with them looked at the four like they were idiots. Who doesn't know what a Bullhead is? Although, everyone, sans the Hunters, wondered what was up with the bipedal cat.

~Line Break~

After assigning the teams, Ozpin asked for the four newcomers to accompany him to his office. While the Initiation went underway, he and Glynda were contacted by James via Glynda's scroll and informed them of mysterious non-Grimm crearures appearing out of nowhere all over Remnant. Thankfully, the creatures did not pop up in the middle of cities and major settlements. Though some did, the creatures made their way to the forests and the wild. It wasn't long before reports coming in from sailors about a gigantic sea monster killed a Sea Feilong. Similar reports of 'dragons' settling in the mountains of Mistral. Glynda was skeptical at first but the appearance of one of said non-Grimm in Emerald Forest changed her mind.

Looking over his shoulder, Ozpin eyed the four and knew they were related to those non-Grimm somehow. It wasn't long until they reached his office. The Headmaster sat on his chair and offer the four coffee to which they happily accepted. His eyes widened a fraction at how the three drank the freshly-brewed coffee in one go while the 'Palico' drank his sip by sip.

"I see you enjoy this particular brew as well." Ozpin commented with a chuckle before taking a sip from his own mug, earning an eye roll from Glynda "Although, I've never seen anyone, let alone three, drink freshly-brewed, hot coffee like it was water. Well, save for Bartholomew."

"Well, everyone deserves a good meal after fighting three Monsters in one day." Tora replied as she wiped the dripping coffee off her mouth "But I guess it's two considering the brats were the ones that killed that Neverwhore."

Ozpin's only reaction was a slight widening of his eyes. In all his years, not once did he hear someone call a Nevermore... something like that. Leo sighed and corrected the smaller Hunter but couldn't help pulling up a joke about her height again, earning him a sharp elbow to the gut. The Handler let out a laugh while absentmindedly running her hand on Zak's head.

"I'm sorry to cut this short but we need to talk about something important." The seriousness in his voice managed to grab the four's attention "Mainly. You and these 'Monsters' sudden appearance in Remnant."

He pulled out a scroll and showed them pictures and videos of the 'Monsters' spreading throughout Remnant like a plague.

"Rathalos, Tigrex, Ceadeus, Poros, Aptonoths, Vigorwasps, Gigginox, Meowscular Chef, Poogie, Jagras... MEOWSCULAR CHEF!?"

Tora pushed Leo out of the way shortly after his outburst and stared at the video of Meowscular Chef and his Canteen set up on an area called 'Commercial District', giving the onlookers quite a show as the Palico Chef presented a banquet fit for a king. Well, for a Hunter at least. Leo got off the ground and squeezed between Tora and the Handler, feeling his mouth salivating at all the different kinds of food laid out at the table. A sentiment the other two shared. Zak climbed up his Meowster's back and saw what they were looking at. The Palico let out a sound of joy at the sight. So meowch food!

"Ahem."

The four looked at the Headmaster who gave them a slightly amused look "I would appreciate it if you didn't flood my office with your saliva."

The four simultaneously wiped their mouths and rubbed the back of fheir heads sheepishly. Ozpin let out a chuckle before taking back the scroll "As you can see, it seems you weren't the only ones that arrived in Remnant through unknown means. I know the four of you are very familiar with these Monsters and I... would like the four of you to teach my students about these Monsters."

"What!?"

Ozpin calmly met Glynda's incredulous stare "Is there something the matter, Miss Goodwitch?"

"Is there someth- Of course there is! You can't just let four complete strangers become instructors in Beacon. We barely even know them and I believe one of them is too young to be considered as an instructor."

"What'd you say, four eyes!?"

Leo immediately wrapped his arms around Tora and prevented her from lunging at the blonde disciplinarian. This, of course, left him open for the smaller Hunter's elbows and kicks. So much pain in one bloody damn day. This sucks.

"I'm 24, damnit!"

"I find that hard to believe." Glynda replied as she crossed her arms.

"Urusai! I'm just vertically challenged!"

"That's Tora-speak for: I'm short and I have no tits." Leo joked. This earned him a strong elbow to the face, causing him to drop Tora who quickly turned around and sent a hard kick to his gut that sent him flying to the wall. The Handler held Zak in her arms like a stuffed toy and turned to the Headmaster and Disciplinarian.

"What exactly would we be doing, Professor?"

"Well, miss... "

The Handler blinked. No one's ever asked for her name in a long time. She got used to being called 'Handler' for a long time now that she calls herself Handler in her own thoughts.

"Oh! It's Eden, Professor." (A/N: English VA's name. Can't really write her as Handler all the time.)

"Well, Miss Eden. As an instructor, you will help students with understanding these Monsters. From the looks of it, these Monsters have their own way of life. Different from the Creatures of Grimm. You can instruct them with the Monster's basic behavior, territorial preferences, weaknesses and the like. I'll see to it that you get paid for it as well."

"What about sleeping quarters? We, uh, usually camp out in our Hunts but we always had Astera or Seliana as our home base. We even had our own house there."

"I'll see to it that you'll be provided with a suitable apartment near the academy. Is there anything else?"

"Well." Eden brought a finger under her chin to think before snapping her fingers "If there's anything that concerns Monsters, we'll be the ones taking care of it. You can't just go around and kill them all willy-nilly. Some of them are actually peaceful. Like Aptonoths and Poros."

"I think you just volunteered for the job, Miss Eden."

"Huh?"

"You seem to be very knowledgeable about these Monsters and someone close to the students age could help them be more relatable. But I'll still ask, would you like the job Miss Eden?"

The Handler hummed and looked down at Zak who look back with big, innocent eyes. Well, they really don't know how they got here nor do they know how to get back. Besides, if Meowscular Chef and his Canteen are here. Maybe the Commander or Admiral might be here as well. Maybe even the Research Commission or the whole of Astera and Seliana. If so then, there's someone better for the job than her. But they do need a place to stay until they figure out what happened and if they can get back. Heck, they weren't even sure if the others will even be transported here.

"If I take the job, what about my partners? If it's information concerning Monster behaviors and the like, I can teach the students all I know. My partners are more into combating them though."

"Hmm. Combat, you say. Perhaps... yes. Tell me, Miss Eden. The four of you are trained in Wilderness Survival, correct?" He received a nod and Ozpin continued "Then one of them can choose to instruct a Wilderness Survival class for All Year-Levels. The other will be their instructor for Monster Combat class. I'm sure one of them will be eager for the job."

"What about me, nya?"

Ozpin stared at the Palico and hummed in thought before taking a sip of his coffee "How about... Miss Eden's assistant for Monster Studies class, yes?"

"Ok!"

"Excellent. Now, if you please take a seat and sign a couple of papers. Everything will be official."

"Of course." Eden replied before looking over her shoulder to the duo. Tora was stomping her foot on Leo's head who groaned and was seeing stars by this point "Um, I'll just sign the papers in their place."

"Are you sure?" A nod and Ozpin shrugged "Very well."

The Headmaster showed the papers and Eden signed them, even Leo's and Tora's. She gave the papers back and Ozpin palced them away before giving the Handler a smile.

"Well, Professor Eden. Welcome to Beacon."

~Prologue End~

**_A/N: So... I've been bitten by the MH and RWBY bug and I can't get them outta my head so this was made. In Maya's words from Borderlands 2: "Hmm. I have no idea what I'm doing."_**


End file.
